Thursday, March 13, 2008

Product review # 3

I only seem to be able to do these reviews once every year. But anyway, the purchase for spring is... (drumroll, please)... a yoga mat!

"Power" Yoga?

However, we are not going to use it for yoga.

We were inspired by Marcus' godparents who, as pensioners, had bought a yoga mat for doing sit-ups and calisthenics. We got to try out their mat the other day (for various kinds of sit-ups* and leg lifts) and a light bulb the shape of my belly lit up: we could use one of these.

Plus points: (1) this signifies the start of our proposed fitness program. I will go spinning, Marcus will go jogging, both of us will do sit-ups as often as we can, and we will try to do our Super Joints program (calisthenics-slash-joint exercises) everyday. I'll at least try to follow this plan for a month and see where we go from there. But with the fitness plan in mind, this is an exciting purchase. I feel healthy just buying it. Hehe! (2) Yoga mats come in cute "chick" colors. Among others, there was baby blue, bright violet and bright pink. However, since I am to share this mat with Marcus, and because it would be a pity to dirty cute-colored mats, I resorted to black, which they thankfully also had (perhaps with the yoga-men in mind?) (3) Nice long mat (185 x 61 cm), and I must admit, comfortable. (4) Washable up to 40 degrees C.

Minus point: The price. Since yoga has been "in" during the recent years, even yoga mats have become a fashion accessory of some sort, I'm afraid. Honestly, how much does it cost to produce and cut a 5-millimeter thick rubber mat? Even with the Swedish brand "Casall" printed on it and a yoga celebrity's face and signature printed on the label, I doubt if it was really necessary for me to pay 299 kronor (2,000+ PhP). Still, I'm supposed to consider this the "bargain mat" because the other options were a very thin 199 kronor mat (that wasn't recommended for sit-ups and kneeling, so what's it for?), or a thicker 8mm mat that costs almost 500. Maybe their price range would go down if they didn't produce the mat in so many exciting colors, or if they didn't have to pay that yoga-celebrity for her picture (where she's seen in a Buddha-like position). However, I am assured by the label that the rubber is both eco-friendly and hypoallergenic. Maybe that explains it?

*On sit ups: I've discovered that the reason why I hate doing them is that I've been doing them wrong all these years. Apparently, that arch on the small of your back should be pasted to the floor to do be able to do efficient sit-ups and to avoid back pain. To check, you shouldn't be able to stick your hand under your lower back when you're lying down on the floor. Suddenly, sit-ups became back-pain free. But Marcus and I am currently "suffering" from stomach ache when we laugh, sneeze or get up from bed. No pain no gain!

2 Comments:

"Power" yoga is a type of yoga based on ashtanga yoga, which has quite a bit of jumping and focuses a lot on balance and muscle strength. :) I've been taking power yoga classes here and they've been super.

No word yet from Linkoping. Hayy I'm getting a bit anxious na! Rest well and get well soon, dear. :)